


A Kit? In MY BoM Headquarters? It's More Likely Than You Think

by moretrash



Series: Dads of Marmora [29]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst?????, Cuddling & Snuggling, Dads of Marmora (Voltron), Headaches & Migraines, Maybe - Freeform, Nests, Passing Out, Protective Ulaz, Sickfic, Touch-Starved
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-18
Updated: 2018-06-18
Packaged: 2019-05-24 20:39:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,176
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14961783
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moretrash/pseuds/moretrash
Summary: Keith arrives at the medical bay after passing out during training. Ulaz discovers some surprising facts about the Blade of Marmora's newest member.A "How the dads adopted Keith" fic





	A Kit? In MY BoM Headquarters? It's More Likely Than You Think

The Blades of Marmora were a group of warriors, so Keith didn’t expect anything more than a ruthless group of emotionless Galra. 

Boy, did he have to do a double take the first time he truly walked through the headquarters and saw packs cuddling together and Galra from different packs comforting one another after a bad day. It was the complete opposite of what he was expecting, in all honesty. 

So, why was he so shocked?

Keith noticed early on how Galra would be very touchy-feely with him, hugging him after missions and helping him up during training. They were very encouraging to him, always encouraging him to get back up when he was knocked down during training and congratulating him when he started showing improvement during training.

Now, he craved even the smallest of touches from anyone, and it was never enough. Maybe it was because he was new, or because no one knew if he belonged to a pack, but Keith didn’t want to look stupid by saying that he needed a hug. (In reality, everyone was scared of hurting him because he was so fragile compared to them.) He had noticed early on in his life that he got physical pains in his abdomen when he went too long without contact with another person, and Keith became used to the pain because he was too shy to admit to anyone in the headquarters that he needed a hug. 

It didn’t help that he was being put through the ringer during training. Antok would push him for hours without stopping, working him both in skills with his blade and hand-to-hand combat. When they worked on hand-to-hand combat, he thought Antok was at an unfair advantage seeing as how Antok was triple his size and Keith often skipped breakfast to get to training early. 

Another thing that didn’t help Keith at all was the fact that his immune system suddenly decided to do a 180. Before going to the blades, Keith hardly ever got sick. Now, he seemed to be sick with a different illness every other day. Keith supposed it was because his body was being exposed to illnesses it had never encountered before, but that didn’t make it any less miserable. Sneezes, coughs, nausea, aching, chills, headaches, and so much more attacked his body on a daily basis.

Overall, Keith’s first month at the Blade of Marmora headquarters was miserable.

-

Ulaz was worried about Keith, in all honesty. He had watched the newly recruited blade from afar when Antok and Kolivan pushed him to his limits and beyond. But as time went on. Keith looked paler and Ulaz would notice that he would pause and clutch at his abdomen every so often.

“Why do you push Keith so hard?” Ulaz had asked one time, when Kolivan and Antok were lounging in their pack nest. Kolivan sat up and looked at the head doctor.

“Because he is not up to the standard of a blade. He is well developed in his fighting, compared to others, but he still has a long way to go to be able to follow simple rules of a mission.” Kolivan explained, nuzzling against Ulaz and smiling. Ulaz sighed softly.

“Yes, but everyone goes at their own pace. Do not forget that you were far behind the other blades when we were recruits.” Ulaz pointed out. “Keith is a stunning fighter already from what I’ve observed. Not as polished or clean as a blade, but he does have good technique.”

“Yes, he is a good fighter with his blade. The idea is to polish out his technique and let him get used to working with his blade in both dormant form and activated form. He does need work on hand-to-hand combat, though.” Antok said. Ulaz nodded and nestled against Thace.

“I still have to do a basic medical exam on him. We know nothing about his health level. But he seems to avoid the medical bay like the plague.” Ulaz said. Thace nodded and held Ulaz close to his chest, purring.

“Conduct one the first time he comes in. He can’t go forever without an illness or injury.” Thace pointed out.

-

Keith woke up feeling like he was being suffocated under a pile of blankets. He sat up and felt like his head was being pounded on with a sledgehammer. He groaned softly and got dressed in his black shirt and pants and his red jacket, which was the only outfit he owned besides his blade uniform and a set of pajamas he had found in his room that were so loose on him that he supposed it had belonged to someone else at one point. 

He made his way through the hallways and considered stopping for breakfast for once before his stomach turned at the very idea of food. He decided it would be better for him to skip breakfast and just get to training. 

As always, the training hall was empty save for Antok that early in the morning. As blades awoke and ate breakfast, the training hall would start to fill. Antok looked over when he heard the door open, setting his datapad down with his things.

“Good morning, Keith. Here early again?” Antok said. Keith nodded a bit.

“Good morning, Antok. And yeah, I am. Is that a problem?” Keith asked, almost hesitantly. 

“It is not a problem at all. Start warming up.” Antok said, going back to his datapad as Keith warmed up. 

As the training hall filled, everyone noticed Keith’s condition get steadily worse over the morning. On more than one occasion, someone had tried to get Keith to sit down and take a break at the very least, and some suggested he just stop training for the day. Keith would always defensively snap about how he was fine. He would take a drink of water to get them to leave him alone, and go back to training.

However, no one was convinced that Keith was fine when they broke for lunch. Keith remained, however, working with training dummies on hand-to-hand combat. He usually did eat lunch, but his stomach turned again at the idea of eating, and Keith hadn’t wanted to stop training anyway. Antok had glanced worriedly at Keith for a moment before leaving him to go to lunch.

Keith’s head was pounding, the lights making tears come to his eyes and any sound making it feel like his brain was throbbing. He felt dizzy and nauseous, and he couldn’t breathe very well, but he thought he was fine. He was shivering with chills despite his jacket, but he thought he was fine. He had worked through countless illnesses in the last month, why was this one so different? He felt a bit weaker than usual, sure, and he was aching far earlier than he usually did during training, but he was convinced he was fine. 

-

Nobody was convinced that Keith was fine. 

They noticed early on into afternoon training how Keith’s knees would buckle slightly before Keith would straighten out, and Keith would sway for a moment before bracing himself on a wall or another person for a moment. Many of the other people who were training were getting fed up with Keith’s stubborn attitude when he was so clearly not okay. They weren’t angry at all, just concerned for the newest member of the blades. 

Many were about to step forward to force Keith to sit down and take a break when Keith started swaying more intensely. The ones closest to him noticed him tipping dangerously forward.

Keith’s knees buckled and, to everyone’s horror, he passed out. He was caught before he could face-plant the floor, lowered gently to the floor as blades gathered in concern around Keith.

Antok had been on the other side of the room, giving tips to a pair of blades that were sparring, when he heard concerned and worried shouts from at least a dozen blades. Looking over, he saw them gathering around something. He moved over to the group and moved the aside (not that he needed to ask, they moved aside when they saw him.) He saw Keith laying with his head in the lap of a blade that was sitting with him.

“What happened?” He asked the blade.

“Well, we’ve been noticing that he was looking weaker. We were about to get him to take a breather before he just… passed out. I think he is sick.” The blade answered, brushing Keith’s bangs out of his eyes. Antok couldn’t help but smile at the fact that Keith, without knowing it, had managed to earn the respect and friendship of nearly every blade who was a regular in the training hall. It was no surprise to him, though; Keith was always willing to offer tips if he could, and he was a good sparring partner for many of the blades who frequented the training hall, of course he had managed to earn a soft spot in their hearts. 

Antok crouched down next to Keith and noticed him shivering, frowning a bit.

“Did he hit his head?” He asked, searching for injuries that could have caused him to collapse. The blade shook his head.

“No, I caught him before he hit his head.” They said, massaging Keith’s temple when his face scrunched up in his sleep, watching him slowly relax. Antok nodded and scooped Keith into his arms so he could take the smallest blade to Ulaz.

“Good work. Now, everyone go back to training.” Antok instructed, carrying Keith out of the room. As he made his way to the medical bay, Keith stirred and whimpered, latching onto the hood of Antok’s blade uniform, his grip surprisingly tight on the material. Antok looked down to find Keith still asleep, his face scrunched up. 

Antok entered the medical bay to find it in its usual state of strangely welcoming tranquility. Most medical bays and hospitals that Antok had been in felt cold and off, yet Ulaz had made efforts to make it more welcoming for the blades ever since he became head doctor. The few patients there were dozing on beds with their pack, and one was being treated by one of the other doctors.

“Ulaz!” Antok called, his voice soft to avoid waking the dozing patients. Ulaz came over and frowned when he saw Keith, taking him from Antok and laying him down on one of the nearby beds. 

“What happened?” Ulaz asked.

“Keith collapsed during training, is what I was told.” Antok said. Ulaz frowned and looked at Keith.

“Did he hit his head?” He asked. Antok shook his head.

“Alright. I’m sure he’ll be fine. Has he eaten today?” Ulaz asked.

“I’m not sure. He arrived at the training hall very early, and I know he skipped lunch to train.” Antok said. Ulaz sighed softly and smiled as Keith started to stir, whimpering quietly and trying to sit up before Ulaz gently pushed him back down. Antok left the room.

“Keith, have you eaten today?” Ulaz asked, pulling out a datapad in preparation to conduct a basic medical exam. Keith shook his head.

“No, I was feeling kind of nauseous so I didn’t.” Keith said. Ulaz frowned and moved closer.

“Have you kept hydrated today, at least?” He asked, hoping to rule out the possibility that Keith was dehydrated.

“Yeah, I have.” Keith said, wincing and trying to roll over. Ulaz tilted his head and set the datapad down, sitting on the chair next to the bed.

“Are you alright, Keith?” Ulaz asked. Keith nodded quickly, too quickly for Ulaz to believe him.

“Keith, in case you have forgotten, I am a doctor. Any medical problem you have, I probably have a solution or treatment for it.” Ulaz pointed out. Keith huffed and tried to sit up again.

“I really am fine. My stomach just hurts.” Keith said. 

“When did it start?” Ulaz asked. “Did it start at around the same time as the nausea?” Keith shook his head and felt his face flushing out of embarrassment.

“No, uh… it’s stupid, actually.” Keith said. Ulaz shook his head.

“No, actually, its not. If you are in pain, it is not stupid if you know the cause. I need to know what the problem is so I can help you.” Ulaz explained. “Now, can you tell me when your pain began?”

“Well, uh… It sounds stupid, but… it starts whenever I go too long without physical contact.” Keith admitted. Ulaz frowned in worry.

“First off, I understand how that sounds stupid to anyone else, but it isn’t to Galra. Galra are touch-oriented beings by nature, and those pains are normal when we go too long without physical contact.” Ulaz explain gently. Keith nodded and relaxed, clinging to the blankets as he shivered. 

“Do you have any other symptoms?” Ulaz asked. Keith shrugged a bit.

“Well, I’m really cold, colder than usual. Everything aches and I have a migraine.” Keith said. “Plus, I’ve had a sore throat for about an hour, I’ve been dizzy and I can’t breathe too well sometimes.” Keith said. Ulaz frowned a bit.

“It sounds like you have a common bacterial infection called dekia. It affects Galra only, so it is no surprise you’ve never contracted it before. Simple antibiotics should help. I do want to conduct a basic medical exam on you before you leave, but would you like me to contact your pack?” Ulaz asked.

“My pack? What’s that?” Keith asked curiously, perking up a bit. Ulaz frowned in thought, staring at Keith.

“You know, your pack? The group of people you nest with and sleep with?” Ulaz asked. Keith shook his head.

“I don’t have one of those. I just sleep in my room on my bed.” Keith said. Ulaz sighed sadly for Keith, grabbing his datapad again.

“Alright, well, first off for the medical exam. How old are you?” Ulaz asked, contemplating on whether or not he should drop the subject since Keith looked ready to fall asleep right where he was sitting. 

“Eighteen.” Keith answered, clearly trying to keep himself awake to answer questions. Ulaz felt a cold bolt of shock jolt through him, nearly making him drop his datapad.

“I’m sorry, can you repeat that?” He asked, just wanting to make sure he had heard right.

“I said I’m eighteen.” Keith repeated, his eyes fluttering closed for a moment before snapping open again in an attempt to stay awake. Ulaz frowned, his worry turning to seething anger towards Kolivan and Antok for letting a toddler go through the trials, and then not giving him a chance to nap or relax at all. He knew that Kolivan and Antok had been present at Keith’s trials, and he couldn’t begin to form a reason why they would willingly put a kit through the trials at all. They hadn’t been present during Regris’ trial, but they weren’t happy when they realized the much older kit had been allowed to go through the trials. He and Thace were on missions or else he was sure they would have stopped the trials before they ever began. 

Ulaz reached out and pulled Keith close, hefting him into his arms and holding him close, letting out soothing rumbles. Keith looked confused, thrashing for a moment before leaning close as he drifted off. 

“Do not worry, kit. I will take care of you now. Just relax, everything is going to be okay.” Ulaz mumbled softly to Keith, rubbing his hair gently. “I am taking the rest of the day off. Do not contact me unless it is an emergency.” Ulaz said, turning to the other doctors in the medical bay before leaving. He made his way to Keith’s room in search of looser, more comfortable clothes, but frowned when he found only the kit’s blade uniform in the closet, and more searching produced a set of clothes that clearly didn’t belong to him in the laundry basket. Ulaz sighed softly and carried him back to his own nest, pulling out a shirt for Keith from Thace’s closet. He hoped his mate wouldn’t mind, but he had the smallest size in shirts, and his clothing would come the closest to Keith’s size, even if it was still at least ten sizes too big. He maneuvered Keith out of his shirt and skinny jeans and into Thace’s sweater, the shirt falling down to past Keith’s knees, the sleeves almost touching the floor. Ulaz smiled at the endearing sight and laid Keith down in the nest, draping a warm blanket over him. 

Ulaz laid next to him and curled around him protectively, staying silent and working on things on his datapad while the kit slept. He looked up when Thace entered the room.

“Why the dimmed light, my mate? If you have a migraine, you know you should be resting.” Thace said, his voice soft. Ulaz smiled gently and shook his head.

“It is not me that has the migraine, Thace.” Ulaz said, pulling back the blanket to reveal the sleeping kit. Keith made an annoyed noise when the warm blanket was pulled off of him, grumbling until it was settled back over him with a small chuckle. Thace perked up and sat on Keith’s other side.

“Is he alright? I mean, you’ve never brought a patient into our nest before.” Thace said. “And why is he wearing my sweater?” 

“Yout have the smallest shirt size and it came the closest to fitting him. Keith does not have any comfortable clothes of his own. He is fine, or will be soon enough. He has dekia.” Ulaz explained. Thace winced in sympathy, since he had come down with the same thing a few months prior and had been sick for a week and a half. 

“Poor guy. Still, why did you bring him here?” Thace asked curiously. Ulaz sighed and ran his hands through Keith’s hair.

“He is a kit, only eighteen. He has no pack and no nest. I wish to claim him as my kit, but I would enjoy it if all of our pack were willing to claim him.” Ulaz said. Thace stared down at Keith.

“Only eighteen? Poor kit, so young, forced to be a paladin of Voltron and go through the trials.” Thace said softly. “If Keith agrees, I believe he would be a fine addition to our pack. Besides, we’ve always talked about having kits, haven’t we, ‘Laz?” 

“Indeed, we have discussed having kits. I was under the impression that it would be after this war, so our kits would not grow up in a universe so torn apart. But, things work in mysterious ways, don’t they, my mate?” Ulaz said, his voice fond as he leaned against Thace and purred in content. Thace smiled and held Ulaz close, a hand settling on Keith’s back.

“Has the kit taken the required medication? Eaten anything?” Thace asked. Ulaz shook his head.

“No. He fell asleep before I could get the antibiotics into him, and he has not eaten today since he was feeling nauseous. Though, I would too if I was training with a migraine. He passed out during training, you know.” Ulaz said. Thace frowned in worry.

“Would you like me to go to the dining hall and get him a bowl of soup? If he is still nauseous, he may not feel up to eating, but he must eat something today.” He said. Ulaz shook his head.

“I think it would be easier if I went, so I can pick up his antibiotics and get him food. Would you be willing to stay with him?” Ulaz said. Thace nodded a bit as Ulaz got up.

“Do you want any food, Thace?” He asked before leaving.

“Just my usual dinner, please.” Thace answered, watching Ulaz leave the room. Thace looked down at Keith and gently ran his hand over Keith’s cheek in what he hoped was a comforting motion. He got up and made sure Keith was comfortable before walking into the adjoining bathroom. He grabbed a soft washcloth from the cabinet and dampened it with slightly warm water from the sink, going back into the nest and gently scrubbing off the sweat on Keith’s face and neck from training, humming quietly as he watched Keith relax in his sleep. Ulaz came in and smiled when he saw his mate caring for the kit that he had randomly taken in. 

“Take a break and eat, Thace.” Ulaz said, handing Thace a plate of food. He nudged Keith’s shoulder until he woke up, smiling welcomingly.

“Do you feel up to some food, kit?” He asked, showing Keith the bowl of soup. He hadn’t filled it to the top since he knew Keith probably wouldn’t eat a full bowl. Keith shook his head and tried to sit up, eventually managing it once Thace piled pillows and blankets behind him to lean against.

“Why did you call me kit?” Keith asked, face scrunching up in pain at even the dimmed lights. 

“You are a kit, a Galran child. You are only eighteen.” Ulaz explained. Keith frowned and shook his head.

“I’m an adult by human standards.” Keith said. Ulaz tilted his head.

“Really? Well, you are barely a toddler in Galra terms. We will take care of you, though, and let you be a kit.” Ulaz said. “I do want you to eat a least a little bit of this soup, though. The antibiotics are best taken with food.” Keith huffed and took the bowl with shaking hands, murmuring a soft thanks when Ulaz steadied it with his hand as he ate his own food. Keith ate a few small bites before stopping.

“Try to eat a few bites more, kit. Then you can rest.” Ulaz promised, encouraging Keith to eat a few more bites and praising him when he did. Keith glanced around the nest and at himself as Ulaz grabbed his antibiotics.

“What is this place? Who’s clothes are these?” Keith asked blearily, taking the pill that was offered to him.

“This is my pack’s nest. And the sweater you are wearing belongs to Thace.” Ulaz explained. Keith wrapped his arms around himself, sighing.

“This shirt is really soft. Like… a blanket. And what’s a nest?” Keith said. Thace tilted his head in confusion.

“A nest? You know, to sleep in with your pack?” He said. Keith shook his head, indicating that he had no idea what he was talking about. “Can I go back to sleep now? My head hurts.” 

“Yes, you can go back to sleep, kit. But first, where did you get this scar?” Ulaz asked, pointing at the thin scar on Keith’s should that was revealed when the sweater slipped off of his shoulder.

“Oh, I got that during my trials. Its fine.” Keith said. Ulaz growled lowly, stopping when he heard Keith whimper.

“I am not mad at you, kit. I am angry at Antok and Kolivan for letting you get injured.” Ulaz explain, draping a blanket over Keith and rubbing his back as he drifted off. 

-

When Kolivan and Antok entered the nest, they were surprised to hear loud, angry growling from Ulaz. They looked over in bewilderment, Antok tilting his head when he saw that Ulaz was curled protectively around Keith.

“Is he alright, Ulaz? Why are you growling?” He asked, sitting down next to Thace and trying to tuck himself into Kolivan’s side despite being much larger. Ulaz growled louder.

“You put a quiznaking KIT through the trials. A toddler! Keith is only eighteen!” Ulaz snapped. Kolivan froze in horror and glanced at Antok.

“Only eighteen? Why has he never told us he was so young?” He asked.

“Because he is an adult by human terms. Still, you should have noticed him acting like a kit occasionally. He has a scar from his trials!” Ulaz said.

“We really did not know that he was just a kit. He never told us.” Antok said, looking just as guilty as Kolivan did.

“I would like to claim him as our pack’s kit, if you would agree to it. He does not have a pack.” Ulaz said. 

“We would love to claim him as our kit, Ulaz. He deserves the chance to be a kit. He surely did not have a chance to when he was with Voltron.” Kolivan said, reaching forward and brushing his fingers against Keith’s skin gently.

“He has dekia, which would explain why he passed out during your training, Antok. That, and he was touched starved and did not realize that his stomach pain was completely normal.” Ulaz explained. Antok whimpered in distress, curling around Keith’s other side and rumbling to him.

“Do stay there if possible, Antok. Keith has a migraine and I am sure he will appreciate the way block out light.” Ulaz said, wrapping an arm around Keith. He jumped but grinned when Keith started purring, the sound rough and broken from disuse, but entirely present. 

Ulaz knew he would have a fun time with Keith as his kit.

**Author's Note:**

> Check out my tumblr legendary-marmorans !


End file.
